InternationalThursday, 13 August 2026·Hindu Tamil Thisai
Sri Lanka approves return of Tamil refugees from India with pre-2006 exit and identity conditions
Sri Lanka’s Cabinet approved immigration permission for refugees in India to return if they left before 1 June 2006 and prove identity through the Sri Lankan mission in India.
Key highlights
Direct fact
In August 2026, Sri Lanka’s Cabinet approved immigration permission for Tamil refugees in India to return to Sri Lanka, subject to conditions announced in Colombo by Minister Nalinda Jayatissa.
Key specifics
- Only those who left Sri Lanka before 1 June 2006 are eligible to return under the new permission.
- Applicants must confirm their Sri Lankan identity through the Sri Lankan mission in India.
- They must not have been involved in murder, treason against the government, or other crimes.
- A temporary foreign passport will be issued to eligible returnees for travel to Sri Lanka.
- Since 1983, 3,04,269 refugees have come to Tamil Nadu, and about 2,12,000 have returned through UNHCR and the Indian governments.
Exam lens
International relations and refugee policy question: Sri Lanka, 1 June 2006 cut-off, temporary foreign passport, UNHCR, Tamil Nadu refugee figures. TNPSC may ask the eligibility conditions for return.